a realist perspective?

I arrived at UWC an idealist, but I fear I’m leaving a realist. The year seems to have shown me that as beautiful as the world and cultures are, the world is a pretty shitty and messed up place. Peace seems impossible. We can barely settle disputes among ourselves, how do we expect the big bad world to do the same?

The time-consuming practices of bureaucracy and diplomacy seem to have become a tiring prerequisite for communication. Ah communication, another thing we hold so dearly to our liberal, progressive hearts, wanting to be included on all discussions and have a say in everything. I realise why societies opt for authoritarian rules (or didn’t but it sort of worked?) - it’s just so much more efficient, you get the job done right away and the right way!

Except that’s another thing, that my right way and your right way are two different rights, and neither are wrong. A friend once explained to me how my beliefs as a human being are no more worthy than others, and that while I may believe I possess a truth, it’s all relative to the society and culture I was raised in. For example, I may hold a “liberal” view on subjects like LGBTQ+ or religion, but when someone from what I would deem a “conservative” background challenges my view, my brain would register it as an abomination to human rights. Of course it goes without saying that it works the other way around too, should I visit their country or community and present my bizarre set of ideals that are foreign to them, they are bound to receive it with hostility. So it begs the question, to what extent are the set of values I’ve grown up with actually true? Does it need to be true for me to get on with life?

This realism that has filled me seems to have come across as demotivating and disheartening - because really what’s the point? We come to UWC to change the world, but damn, that’s one hell of an empty promise to make to 16-18 year olds.

But do I actually fear my newfound realist perspective?

I seem to have rather found comfort in it. My failures have taught me to work within the scope I am able to change, sometimes pushing the limits of that scope but also understanding I am most effective by recognising that scope and optimising my work within it. People often think of this scope as a bad thing, as a restriction or boundaries of sorts that shouldn’t be crossed. I like to think of it as a real, personal recognition that only you can make of your own abilities, keeping in mind that as you progress in life you can widen the scope yourself, but knowing realistically that in this scope your work will make a genuine difference.

I've learnt that communication is tiring, but also that it's necessary. I've learnt to listen more often than speak, to understand where the other person is coming from, the rationale behind their idea and to speak kindly but honestly. I've learnt to fight for what I believe in, but also how to pick my battles.

I’ve learnt to take risks, not calculated ones, but knowing when to stop. I’ve begun doing more of what I love, what I want to do. I also know what I have to do, so learning to allocate time for that balance between have to and want to has been a tricky one to master, but being realistic about your abilities helps with it.

I’ve become more lost than I was when I first got here, but in a way I’m definitely closer to the version of me I want to be. I guess that’s what UWC meant when they said we’d change the world - we’re learning to change ourselves. We’re not learning how to change the whole world, but how to make small changes and make changes that actually matter.

I believe that you can still dream and be realistic, it’s learning to balance the two and not compromising one or the other that’s the tricky part. And just like these there are loads of lessons that you learn from being with people from all around the world trying to make a legitimate difference, I think the lesson of recognising the scope of your impact and starting your dreams there is arguably one of the most important and meaningful takeaways from UWC.